Good Answer

My almost 4-year-old grand-nephew was enjoying playing in my room while the adults were finishing up with Sunday lunch. I don’t dine with the other adults because it is my routine to eat later and by my lonesome. The “lone diner” is one of my autism spectrum disorder traits along with my obsession with electronic gadgets that my grandnephew was playing with. I’d like to say it is ME that attracts him to my room but I suspect it is a combination of his great aunt’s company and her gadgets.

He was sitting on my recliner and asked me, “Is this your bed?” I told him it was. “You sleep in a chair?” I nodded I did. I then asked, “Can I have your bed?” He said, “No, it’s at my house.” HA!

It was days later that we were taking care of him and his eight-year-old sister for my niece. Their grandmother picked them up and she came into my room. She immediately noticed that my room was bedless and asked if I slept on THAT (pointing to my recliner). Since I was caught off guard with the question, it took me a good minute to answer. I was even surprised by my answer which was: “It’s an aspie thing.” Instead of coming up with some other excuse, I decided to forgo passing and call it what it was.

The reason I called it an aspie thing goes back to years ago when I lived in a two-story condo by myself. I bought a queen-sized bed when I moved in. The problem was by the third night, I couldn’t get comfortable even though I had a half-dozen pillows situated under my head and at my sides. Honestly, I haven’t found a comfortable bed to sleep in yet. I sleep with more pillows than anybody I know. A comfort thing, I guess.

The final straw that put me downstairs wasn’t the bed. It was the pitter-patter of the feet of whoever resided above me. Such patter will bring on a meltdown just as fast as loud music. By the way, the upstairs neighbor ignored my broom.

After a few nights of sleep-overs on the recliner, I became attached to the recliner and sleep on it instead. So that’s why I told my grand-nepher’s “Mimi” it was an “aspie thing” that my recliner served the dual purpose of sitting and sleeping.

Bless Mimi’s heart for her response of saying simply in a cheerful voice, “Oh, okay.” Good answer! Simple and short. Better than others I have received such as “you don’t look it” or “oh, well, everybody’s got something.”